I just knew it would be really special to make Xander's first birthday cake. I love to cook, but I'm not a much of a baker. So I was on a mission to find a recipe that was yummy, easy to make and clean... free of gluten and refined sugars. One of my mommy friends suggested a recipe by Danielle Walker. I took Danielle's recipe and made it my own. Check out what I came up with!

 My vision for a white + rustic birthday cake for Alexander's Wild One came to life and I was very pleased.  Raspberries were Alexander's favorite fruit at the time, so I knew I had to make a raspberry cake.  

 

Ingredients

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2½ cups blanched almond flour

¾ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon sea salt

⅔ cup maple syrup or honey

⅓ cup coconut oil, melted

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon lemon juice

⅓ cup of coconut milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

½ teaspoon lemon zest

½ cup roughly chopped raspberries

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Frosting

   3 ripe bananas

1 ½ cups of unsweetened coconut flakes

--use coconut whipped cream if banana mash is not your thing --

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Filling

1 cup of frozen raspberries

2 tablespoons of coconut sugar

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F

2. Lightly coat 2,  8 inch round baking pans with coconut oil

3. Combine the maple syrup, coconut oil, eggs, lemon juice, vanilla,  coconut milk and lemon zest into a blender and puree until the mixture is smooth

4. Add the dry ingredients and blend until the batter is very smooth. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the blender and blend again until the mixture is fully incorporated and smooth.   Gently fold the chopped raspberries in by hand

5. Divide the batter evenly into the 2 pans

6. Bake for 16-18 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake and if it come out clean, the cake is done

7. Let the cakes completely cool down before frosting

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Filling & Frosting

8. Combine the thawed raspberries with the coconut sugar

9. Blend the bananas until fully smooth

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Assemble

10. Place the first layer of cake on the cake stand

11. Spread the raspberry filling on top of the first layer

12. Place second layer of cake on top of the first layer

13. Spread the banana frosting evenly on the top and the sides of the cake

14. Sprinkle the coconut flakes on the top and the sides of the cake

15. ENJOY!!

 

Xx,

Rocio